By-law or bylaw?
by-law is a noun meaning “Alternative spelling of bylaw”; bylaw is a noun meaning “A local custom or law of a settlement or district”. Wiktionary gives them as spellings of the same word. by-law is written with a hyphen and bylaw as one word; they are used differently.
What is the difference between by-law and bylaw?
| by-law | bylaw | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | noun | noun |
| Meaning | Alternative spelling of bylaw | A local custom or law of a settlement or district A rule made by a local authority to regulate its own affairs |
| Example | none recorded | none recorded |
| Forms | by-laws | bylaws |
| Pronunciation | /ˈbaɪ.lɔː/ | /ˈbaɪ.lɔː/ /ˈbaɪ.lɔ/ /ˈbaɪ.lɑ/ |
| In writing | not counted (the list counts single words) | about once in every 3 million words |
Sources: by-law and bylaw in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of by-law and bylaw
by-law
- 1
Alternative spelling of bylaw
bylaw
- 1
A local custom or law of a settlement or district
- 2
A rule made by a local authority to regulate its own affairs
- 3
A numbered provision within such kind of legislation
- 4
A law or rule governing the internal affairs of an organization (e.g., corporation or business)
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, by-law or bylaw?
by-law is a phrase, which the list of single words does not count; bylaw about once in every 3 million words.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).